A few others that haven't been mentioned yet (I think):
A campily trashy example of the maternal monster is Roger Corman's
BLOODY MAMA about Ma Barker (Shelly Winters) and her brood (including a
young Robert DeNiro).
Also see at the least the opening scene of Sam Fuller's THE NAKED KISS
(Vengeful Lover?).
Corman also produced the early Scorsese film BOXCAR BERTHA with Barbara
Hershey--a version of the "woman warrior." While another obvious
attempt to play off the BONNIE AND CLYDE theme, it does have some
pretensions to seriousness.
The current film THE RING, with its demonic child-ghost, might be
especially worth a look if you haven't seen it yet.
And no one I think has mentioned JOHNNY GUITAR, with its epic knock-down
fight between Mercedes McCambridge and Joan Crawford.
If you're interested in comic violence, Carol Lombard does a fair amount
of slapping around in some of her films, especially NOTHING SACRED.
Another monstrously passive-aggressive mother is Bette Davis's Regina in
THE LITTLE FOXES. But then you could probably have a course just
featuring Davis and Crawford in a number of films, culminating in
WHATEVER HAPPENED TO BABY JANE?
Don Larsson
-----------------------------------------------------------
"Only connect" --E.M. Forster
Donald F. Larsson
Department of English, AH 230
Minnesota State U, Mankato (56001)
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-----Original Message-----
From: Pizzato, Mark [mailto:[log in to unmask]]
Sent: Wednesday, November 20, 2002 12:39 PM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Violent Screen Women--Types
Thanks for all the suggestions thus far. I probably should have
explained
before that my current list (and course structure) involves the types
developed by Barbara Creed in her psychoanalytic book, THE MONSTROUS
FEMININE: the maternal monster (archaic mother and monstrous womb), the
devilish (possessed) girl, the lady vampire, the witch, and the vengeful
lover (femme castratrice)--to which I add the female serial killer, the
woman soldier, and the female detective (as versions of the femme fatale
and
woman warrior). Of course, there's also the "final girl" in slasher
films,
but she's only violent at the end to escape the villain. I'm especially
interested in films (or other types) where the violent screen woman is a
complex character: victim, villain, and hero in one, throughout the
film--not purely good or evil.
Any further suggestions of films involving these character types, or of
other categories?
mp
Mark Pizzato, PhD
Assoc. Prof. of Theatre
Dept. of Dance and Theatre
Univ. of North Carolina at Charlotte
Charlotte, NC 28223
Phone: (704) 687-4488
FAX: 704-687-3795
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